The present invention is directed to a docking station for a cellular mobile handset that serves the dual function of recharging the cellular mobile handset and which also couples a standard POTS telephone set, or POTS-like telephone unit such as a facsimile machine, to the transceiver of the cellular mobile handset. Such a docking station has been manufactured and sold by Telular Corp. of Vernon Hills, Ill. under the name “CELDOCK”. This docking station requires that the cellular mobile handset be physically located and docked in the docking station in order to allow for the coupling of the standard telephone instrument to the transceiver of the cellular mobile handset. This docking station allows for the connection of the cellular mobile handset to the RJ-11 in-premises-wiring of a home or office via an interface, which interface includes a cellular-interface device, such as that disclosed in commonly-owned U.S. Pat. No. 4,658,096, West, et al., whereby one or more POTS or POTS-type telephone sets may be connected to a cellular network for making and receiving calls over the cellular network. The cellular-connection may be accomplished using TDMA, GSM, CDMA, or AMPS technology, and the equivalents thereof The interface provides the necessary central-office functions, such as dial tone, ring voltage, and the like, to the connected POTS instruments.
However, a considerable problem with this prior-art, fixed docking station is that a number of different versions have been required in order to meet the different configurations of the mobile handsets. Thus, a separate version has been required for each of TDMA, GSM, CDMA, or AMPS technologies, rather than one, universal adapter that may be used in all cellular-technology versions. Moreover, since the cellular mobile handset must be stationarily mounted in the docking station, the cellular mobile handset is prevented from being operated in a mobile environment, but must remain fixed in place in the docking station, if the telephone instruments are to remain connected to the cellular network.
Bluetooth-wireless technology, which has allowed remote, wireless connectivity between hardware devices, such as computers and printers, is now also used in cellular mobile handsets for allowing remote, wireless connection between a laptop or desktop computer and the cellular mobile handset for connecting the laptop or desktop computer to the Internet via the cellular or cellular-like network. Examples of Bluetooth-enabled cellular mobile handsets are the Nokia models 6310, 7650, 8910, and Ericsson models R320, R520, T28, T39, and T68, which utilize 3-Com Corp.'s Bluetooth-wireless technology. Bluetooth-wireless specification includes both a link layer and application layer that support data and voice. Cellular radios that utilize Bluetooth wireless specification operate in the 2.4 GHz. radio spectrum using a spread spectrum, frequency hopping, full-duplex signaling at up to 1600 hops./sec. The signal hops among 79 frequencies at 1 MHz. intervals to give a high degree of interference immunity.